My new Bearpaw Mongolian horse bow

[MikeO]

While I prefer modern longbows to recurves, I prefer classical asian recurves to western longbows.

This is a Mongolian style recurve made by Bearpaw (a German company). It's called a horse bow because it was often used from horseback. More speed/range than a western longbow at the same draw weight, but was more expensive, complicated, and time consuming to make. If it got wet, the natural water soluble glue holding them together disolved and the composite materials (wood, horn, sinew) came apart. Why they had a water repellent leather cover from tip to tip. This has the classical covering even though it's made w modern materials. So, if you ever wondered why the English stuck w all wood longbows long after they knew composite recurves were better, it's because they were quicker, cheaper, and easier to make and they worked better in the rain.

Asian horse archers could get off 3 shots in 1.5 seconds, and hit targets straight ahead, to the side, and behind them (the famous Parthian, or parting, shot). Amazing how good you can get w this stuff when it's a matter of life and death, not just fun and games.

On the way to me from Europe, US Customs put a hold on it. I had to verify it was not made from endangered asiatic bears and/or horses...

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l256/mso357/Mongolian/bmcombo_zps619b8360.jpg

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l256/mso357/Mongolian/mongol005_zpse60dba54.jpg

[TCinVA]

1313

Had to.

Looks like a nice bow....but I know nothing about Mongolian bows, so...

[Erik]

That is awesome.

[TGS]

MikeO used to be a Mongolian archer.

Until he took an arrow to the knee.

[jon volk]

I was expecting pastry
http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110417202611/archer/images/1/1e/Bearclaw.png

[Cecil Burch]

That is so cool.

Must have one. Damn it.

[Suvorov]

That is awesome!

You are saying this one is made of modern materials? What are they? Is polymer replacing bone in that the construction techniques are similar just newer materials?

The Asian composite bow was truly a technical wonder of its time. The accounts of Western Armies facing the Mongol Hoard bear this out.

[MikeO]

MikeO used to be a Mongolian archer.

Until he took an arrow to the knee.

May be some Mongol blood in the family tree. I'm Ukranian, and the Mongol hoardes did some planting there...

[MikeO]

That is awesome!

You are saying this one is made of modern materials? What are they? Is polymer replacing bone in that the construction techniques are similar just newer materials?

The Asian composite bow was truly a technical wonder of its time. The accounts of Western Armies facing the Mongol Hoard bear this out.

Fiberglass instead of horn/sinew on the limbs, modern adhesives holding it together, Dacron string.

Parthians, Huns, Saracens, Mongols all did well against Greek, Roman, and Crusader armies on the right terrain.

[Matt O]

Nice bow! Have you shot off your hand before? Is it FF compatible or are you sticking with Dacron?

[helothar]

MikeO used to be a Mongolian archer.

Until he took an arrow to the knee.

I LOL'd
:D

[MikeO]

I have two scars on my knee that do look like arrow holes...


Nice bow! Have you shot off your hand before? Is it FF compatible or are you sticking with Dacron?

I've shot off my hand before. I have a glove for that, but I don't need it w this bow; bare handed I'm not feeling the fletch at all. Not feeling any hand shock or vibration on release, and it's fast and quiet too.

It came w a B55 Dacron string, and I'm sticking w that. B55/550 is the newer Dacron. A little stronger and faster, same stretch (temp elongation) but less creep (perm elongation) than B50/500. Safe for the older bows too.

More eye candy.

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l256/mso357/Mongolian/20028_zps33d13059.jpg

[butler coach]

that is cool. where could someone get something like that.

[Bigguy]

You guys that can shoot bows amaze me. My dad had an early compound bow back in the 70's. With a rifle, he could knock the eye out of a buzzard at 1000 yards. (Yes that's hyperbole, but he was an alternate on the NATO all army team sometime in the 60s. A darn good shot by anybody's standards.) Gun season for deer was about two weeks, but you could bow hunt for a month or more if I remember correctly. You see where we're headed here.
In the 2 week gun season, dad killed enough deer to cover the house. (Yes, that's more hyperbole. However there are those who suspected that my mom, who never to my knowledge set foot in the woods, my not have killed the deer her tags were used on. And I don't remember actually killing ALL of the deer my tags were used on. http://www.guywheatley.com/gifs/secret.gif
In the years he bow hunted, I think he only managed to kill 2 deer. When he passed away, I inherited his bow and decided to give it try myself. Though no where in dad's league, I was also a decent shot with a rifle. I understood the basic concepts of ballistic flight and could make holes where I wanted or needed them. I figured arrows would be even easier to control because they moved slower and I could actually watch their flight. This was southeast Arkansas. There were no archery classes, so what you learned you were going to learn by sending arrows down rage.
I never will forget the first time I let one fly. I watched that thing wag it's tail all the way down range. I'll swear, I think it may have done a complete 360 and actually been traveling tail feathers first before it finally got to the target. (Yes, hyperbole again. It didn't actually fly backward.) I finally got to where I could hit a tennis ball sized target fairly constantly at about 25 yards. Then I took 2 steps back and couldn't hit the hay bales the target was fixed to. I finally got zeroed in on the new distance only to discover I could no longer hit from the original distance. And this was on level ground. Throw in some elevation difference from a stand to the ground, and I'd probably wind up shooting myself. (Not so sure this is hyperbole.)
I tried for a while, but eventually gave up. I'd have had better luck trying to run one down and strangle it with the bow string. I eventually decided that some of the stuff I'd heard about how well people could shoot were simply Robin Hood tales. When I finally saw some legitimate archery tournaments on TV, I was blown away at what a gifted/trained archer could do.
My hat's off to you guys. But short of Zombie Apocalypse where 9MM is no longer available, I'll stick with the thunder sticks.

[MikeO]

There are guys who can loose 3 arrows at a 4 ft target 180 yds away before the first arrow hits; all 3 will hit. I'm not one of those guys.

Doesn't sound very precise by today's standards, but it's good enough to nail a charging horse, and if you stop the horse you pretty much stop the guy on it too...


that is cool. where could someone get something like that.

Decent production bows from Bearpaw, Istvan Toth/Zoltan, Kassai and Grozer from about $250 -$500. Custom from Spitfire and Saluki start at around $700 and up, sometimes way up. I have a friend who paid over $1000 for his Saluki, and waited about a year and a half for it too. It's a Turkish style hybrid w modern pistol style grip. Worth every penny of the price and minute of the wait, but not for me.

I've tried a bunch, IMO, Bearpaw gives you more whoosh for less bucks but YMMV. Keep in mind I prefer stock pistolas to custom 1911s too.

I got mine from iXPe sports in the Netherlands, $260 + $60 shipping = $320 total.

http://archery.ixpesports.nl/contents/en-uk/d1131_Korean_Bow.html

http://www.classic-bow.com/

http://sevenmeadowsarchery.com/Home.html

http://www.salukibow.com/

http://www.spitfirehorsebows.com/

http://www.horsebows.com/

http://www.thelongbowshop.com/categories/Bows/Horsebows

http://hunarchery.com/catalog/index.php

[MikeO]

Asian style horsebows custom made at great prices here in the USA:

Attilas Archery

http://attilasarchery.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&zenid=bc5b664dadfa175a4035f63f0f782d49

Crows Head Outfitters Traditional Archery

http://www.crowsheadoutfitters.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=2_17

[MikeO]

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l256/mso357/Mongolian/mongol1_zpsc1113fe6.jpg